557 Reasons

Desideria (Moderator) says on Mar 21, 2008, 17:32:

bump

"None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free." —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Desideria (Moderator) says on Mar 21, 2008, 17:40:

This is pure nostalgia...

"None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free." —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Dan says on Mar 21, 2008, 17:42:

That's quite a list. They have done so much stuff over the years... I hope to someday see the FARC end but that's hoping for a lot.

God Bless America!

goin_south says on Mar 21, 2008, 18:57:

AfganisDan... you could be a mercenary for Colombia, ... no??

why can't the freakin Chung King Chinese just LEAVE THE FREAKN DOLLY LLAMA and Tibet ... ALONE!

Alma del Norte says on Mar 21, 2008, 20:00:

2 more reasons: Javier (19) and Tristan (18), fom the Atlantis Community, Caquetá - murdered in 2000. It looks like their juvenile thug killers will be released soon.

Alma del Norte says on Mar 21, 2008, 20:07:

But...as for the rest of the list, beware of false positives.

vladimiro says on Mar 21, 2008, 22:58:

I disagree. The terrorist list is purely motivated by politics and has nothing to do with the FARC's actions. Some US/Euro backed terror groups make the FARC look like saints in comparison.

The MKO (currently living under US military protection in Iraq) for instance gassed thousands of Kurds and Iranians to death yet they maintain a press office next to the White House, with strong support in the US congress, and European Union.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People's_Mujahedin_of_Iran

"One mans terrorist is anothers freedom fighter" - Ronald Reagan regarding the Contras.

Aaron21 says on Mar 21, 2008, 23:01:

I suppose it depends on whether you hope countries are ruled by totalitarians hell bent on in-country genocide or free thinkers hell bent on promoting and protecting their country. I choose the latter.

romy says on Mar 22, 2008, 02:57:

Aaron which country is ruled by free thinkers? I want to live there

juancegomez says on Mar 22, 2008, 09:24:

You can still be both a "freedom fighter" and a "terrorist", from a strictly reality-based point of view, all rhetorics aside.

Terrorists can claim they are fighting for freedom, and people who seek freedom can also engage in terrorism.

I see no contradictions there, and the result is hardly pleasing, either way.

That terror lists can and have been used for political purposes is one thing, but we can't exactly ignore the methods that many of these organizations are employing either.

romy says on Mar 22, 2008, 09:49:

Does anyone know what kinds of implications it has to label the FARC as 'insurgents' instead of 'terrrists'?

juancegomez says on Mar 22, 2008, 09:56:

Other than making them feel better and thus making a negotiation more likely to begin by giving them some amount of political recognition, not really that many, at least not by doing just that.

Frankly, it's not like that has never happened before. Pastrana never called them terrorists until the end of the negotiations.

On the other hand, there are other issues which could complicate things further, but...

vladimiro says on Mar 22, 2008, 20:56:

Those who created the "international" (read US/Euro) terrorist list do not have the moral authority to create such lists just as they don't have the moral authority to decry Saddam Hussien's use of chemical weapons when they themselves sold him those very weapons, provided logistics for the chemical bombs, political cover, etc.

Aaron21 says on Mar 22, 2008, 21:35:

Romy, I do not think I alluded to the fact that any countries are ruled by free thinkers - only that I would hope to live in one. However, I do know that all so called "socialist" leaders in the world today (and in history for that matter) were/are either democratic leaders or totalitarians.

Aaron21 says on Mar 22, 2008, 21:40:

It is a game, Vlad, that Hussein lost.